Science grants will be given political screening

In
what environmentalists characterized as an "outrageous" scheme by the
Trump administration to put "politics before science," the
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is now only issuing grants and awards if
they are approved by a political appointee, the Washington
Post's Juliet Eilperin reported.

John
Konkus—a GOP operative who served as President Donald Trump's Leon County,
Florida campaign chairman—now "reviews every award the agency gives out,
along with every grant solicitation before it is issued," Eilperin noted.

She
continued:

According to both career and political
employees, Konkus has told staff that he is on the lookout for "the double
C-word"—climate change—and repeatedly has instructed grant officers to
eliminate references to the subject in solicitations.

Konkus, who officially works in the
EPA's public affairs office, has canceled close to $2 million
competitively awarded to universities and nonprofit organizations. Although his
review has primarily affected Obama administration priorities, it is the heavily
Republican state of Alaska that has undergone the most scrutiny so far.

Liz
Bowman, an EPA spokeswoman, made clear in an interview with the Post that the purpose behind having a
political aide "screen" awards and grants has nothing to do with
scientific merit.

Rather,
Konkus's role is "ensure funding is in line with the agency's mission and
policy priorities," Bowman said.

Given
the Trump administration's moves during its first seven months in power—which
include withdrawing the
U.S. from the Paris climate accord and dismantling regulations
aimed at protecting the air and water—environmentalists warned
that the EPA's new standard for grants and awards essentially amounts to a ban on climate
funding.

"To
sum up," concluded Don Moynihan‏, professor of government at the
University of Wisconsin-Madison, "someone with no scientific expertise is
deciding on science grants for reasons of ideology and spite."